Elakah Sea Kayaking & the MV Sea Wolf
San Juan Islands Kayaking, Hiking & Biking
Exploration
Kelp: Gift of the Sea
The San Juan Islands are blessed with the most spectacular and diverse natural beauty on the Pacific Northwest Coast.
Orcas', migratory whales, hundreds of sea birds and migrating birds, porpoises, seals, sea lions, deer, racoons, otters and foxes to name a few inhabit these waters and islands. The rich ecosystem provides plentiful food for wildlife and the opportunity for us to see them in their natural environment.
Shielded from storms by three majestic mountain ranges and almost completely protected against rough ocean waves, this island paradise with its scenic naturescapes is the Pacific Northwest's gem. A milder winter comes later and spring arrives earlier. Miles of emerald isles floating in the Salish sea backdropped by the white-capped peak of Mount Baker in the distance will entrance your soul.
The San Juan’s geology, carved by glaciers thousands of years ago, varies from flat farmland to small mountains. Glacial moraines, pleistocene fossils and erratic boulders abound in these islands awaiting your discovery.
Island Creatures
Many creatures call this home including oystercatchers, Harlequin ducks, murres, great blue herons, mergansers, grebes, and the inhabitants of an incredible intertidal zone. Stewart Island is where we frequently see orcas as they converge to gorge on the Fraser River salmon. Seals, Stellar's sea lions, harbor porpoises, deer, raccoons and squirrels abound in this part of the San Juan Archipelago.
All of these islands are beautiful and have unique characteristics of their own. October is a beautiful time to explore this area as the summer's thousands of visitors have dwindled away and we should have it almost to ourselves. We have 2 types of trips to offer as well as a private charter on which you can design your own island adventure.
Outer Islands, Sucia, Macia, Patos and Stewart (Kayaking & Hiking)
Island Features
Sculpted by ice, terrain uplift and pounding surf, Sucia's is a geological wonder of rock sculpture: a horseshoe-shaped island with a cluster of 11 tiny satellite islands. Many bays with nooks and crannies to explore ringed with almost tropical beaches. Sucia Island's name originated with the Spanish Captain Eliza on his map of 1791. He named it "Isla Sucia". Sucia in Spanish means "dirty" or in a nautical sense "foul". This word was chosen because the shore was deemed unclean and reefy. These reefs and broken shorelines are from a geologic folding of the earth's crust.The fold has risen from the depths of the sea bringing with it many interesting marine fossils.The Nanaimo geologic formation is mainly represented in Stuart Island, Waldron Island, Sucia, Matia, and Patos Islands, as well as a hand full of smaller rocks and islets are in this formation. This formation is much younger than the other terrains in the San Juan Islands and consequently they are much less deformed. Soft sandstone and conglomerate rocks perhaps laid down in an ancient river delta or shallow bay are the predominate feature. The isolated coves and bays of Sucia Island once served the Lummi Indians in their seal hunting days. They later provided excellent hideouts in the 1800s for smugglers of illegal Chinese laborers, as well as for hiding illegally imported wool and opium. Still later, the islands played a large role in rum-running during liquor prohibition of the 1920s and 1930s. Stewart Island has a beautiful lighthouse, from there we frequently see orcas.
Stewart Jones & Lopez (Kayaking, Biking & Hiking)
Island Features
We will start our adventure kayaking around Stewart Island and perhaps hike up to the lighthouse. Wonderful rock formations, tide pooling and hopefully a magical encounter with orcas. Then, on to Lopez island. We will drop folks off to go bicycling through the Southern portion of Lopez, which is slightly hilly with incredible vistas overlooking the waters. A picnic lunch and we will launch our kayaks for an adventurous paddle around the south end of Lopez Island, an incredible paradise reminiscent of Southeast Alaska. The Lopez terrain also consists of ancient oceanic crust, pillow basalts, and sedimentary rocks. The great temperatures and pressures created in the depths of the trench converted most of the sedimentary rocks to dark slates, which break into thin slabs. Kayaking around the Cone Islands, near Cypress Island, is a great way to see these slate rocks. South Lopez Island, and the extreme south edge of Decatur Island also have nice representative rocks exposed.The Sea Wolf will meet us in Watmough Bay where, weather permitting, we will anchor for the night. We will be focusing on exploring this are for our trip as it is one of the jewels of the islands. Next, onto Jones Island, a renowned state park but in October we should have it mostly to ourselves. Stands of the rare Geary oak, majestic madronas and stands of magnificent cedar adorn this island. Hiking and kayaking here bring evidence of nature's beauty around each corner.
